The Swell Season is...

a) the title of a book by Josef Skvorecky
b) a band
c) both of the above.

So glad you picked (c).

Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova. He's Irish, lead singer of the Frames, been around forever; she's Czech, early 20s, met him when he came through her hometown when she was about 12. They made a movie together a few years ago called Once that was a great movie; now they've put out a second album called Strict Joy, named after a poem by James Stephens:

"For, as he meditated misery
And cared it into song - Strict Care, Strict Joy!
Caring for his grief he cared his grief away:
And those sad songs, tho' woe be all the theme,
Do not make us grieve who read them now -
Because the poet makes grief beautiful."

It's a pretty mellow, quiet, lovely album overall. At first I thought I was not going to like it, but as I listened to it today.... yeah. Yeah! YEAH! Glen and Marketa dated for a while at one point; I wonder how many of these songs of love blossoming but being wrong were a result of that time.

"I know we're not where I promised you we'd be by now
But maybe it's a question of who'd want it anyhow

...

Have you had enough?
Had enough?
There's plenty more where that came from now"

- "The Rain"

"So go on now, you are forgiven
Let's put it down to life
The story of two lovers
Who danced both edges of the knife

...

Just be patient while I wait here
Our journey is out of sync
While you're out there running in the chaos
I need some time to think"

- "Fantasy Man'

"Forgive me lover
For I have sinned
For I have done you wrong

For I have hurt
Beyond repair
When tears occurred
No I didn't care

But this estranged organ in my chest
Still beats for you
It will not rest, so
Meet me in our secret placde
When the time has come

And rest your head in my lap
And I'll lead you out of your own trap
And I'll show you how much
You have missed through the
Time we weren't right."

- "I Have Loved You Wrong"

Call me crazy, but that seems pretty obvious.

I've been thinking about art and what kind of art I want to do. I'd usually say cooking, although I'm not much for presentation. Lately though I feel like I should really dive into writing. I got to watch the district competition for Toastmasters and the art of the word is key to making a great speech. Painting a visual image is no less a skill for being verbal. The fine poetry above is also lush in its expressions...

Ruminations.